Mixes Signals Coming out of Ottawa
Canadian Press reports that the Liberal Government plans to spend at least one billion new dollars to raise the living standards of Canada’s Aboriginal peoples... Citing sources in Ottawa, the announcement will be made on November 25 unless an election is called.... The announcement will be made when the Prime Minister meets with Aboriginal leaders on that date...
The Globe and Mail reports that the November statement is little more than the re-announcement of a $700 million health fund Martin unveiled during the premiers meeting in the fall of 2004... Citing government documents, the Globe reports that most if not all of the funding to be reported in November is the $700 million health fund. "I find this to be completely unacceptable," Assembly of First Nations national chief Phil Fontaine said in a written statement in response to the new information." He said the money should be flowing to the communities already. To read more, click here.
From the Globe and Mail ... Tuesday, September 27, 2005 Page A4
No new money slated for aboriginals
Last year's $700-million health pledge to be repackaged for November meeting
By BILL CURRY
OTTAWA -- The federal government is planning to use old money to make up most of its long-promised spending announcements at an impending first ministers meeting on aboriginal issues, including the re-announcement of a $700-million health fund the Prime Minister unveiled when he met the premiers in the fall of 2004.
In spite of pledges at the time that the money would flow quickly, not a dollar of the fund has been spent to improve the health of aboriginals.
According to government documents obtained by The Globe and Mail, the $700-million is slated to form most, if not all, of the federal government's health funding announcement at the November meeting in Kelowna, B.C.
"I find this to be completely unacceptable," Assembly of First Nations national chief Phil Fontaine said in a written statement in response to the new information.
"This additional funding should already have begun flowing months ago in order to address critical areas in first nations' health, particularly suicide prevention."
In addition to health, the government is planning announcements on economic development, education and housing.
The education dollars will be new, but the documents and sources indicate the roughly $500-million for housing will come from the NDP budget deal passed in June.
When the health fund was announced, Prime Minister Paul Martin said he would support an AFN request that the money would increase based on inflation, but the documents show the government may back out of that arrangement.
A document prepared last month for a committee of deputy ministers getting ready for the summit states that "expectations [are] likely higher than can be met" in terms of an inflation arrangement.
Health Minister Ujjal Dosanjh said negotiations are wrapping up on how the $700-million will be spent and those details will be part of the first ministers meeting announcement. The minister said it is too early to know whether other money, such as the inflation request, will be added.
He pledged that money from the $700-million fund will start going to aboriginals once the details are announced at the summit.
"I wish we could have done it faster, but I think the fact is all of this has to be in the context of a larger blueprint," he said.
Ministers on the cabinet committee on aboriginal affairs meet today to discuss planned federal announcements for the summit. Ministers are also expected to have a preliminary discussion about how the announcements will be financed.
Meanwhile, the leader of the Métis National Council, Clément Chartier, said it is clear from discussions at the officials level that Métis issues are being pushed to the sidelines.
"While we may be included in some way, it's not going to be overly substantial," he said.
The first ministers meeting is supposed to be the culmination of negotiations the Prime Minister launched with aboriginal leaders shortly after taking office in December of 2003, to produce "transformative" improvements for aboriginals.
New Democrat MP Pat Martin said the government would be breaching its agreement with his party if it uses the NDP budget to cover a large part of the financial announcements at the summit.
"People are going to hit the roof when they realize that this isn't new money," he said. "That would be a terrible disappointment."